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Zwane-Ball needs time and Chiefs could be unstoppable if they get it right
'It was good that we were exposed like this,' said the Chiefs head coach after the 4-0 loss to Sundowns.
Arthur Zwane and Kaizer Chiefs had a tough afternoon against Sundowns. Picture: Lefty Shivambu/Gallo Images.
When Arthur Zwane was announced as head coach of Kaizer Chiefs, he promised a team who will play football the way the supporters want – it was soon handed the moniker Zwane-Ball.
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Three games into the season some Chiefs supporters are unsure if it will work. The 4-0 drubbing at the hands of Mamelodi Sundowns at the weekend didn’t help the carse.
But the shape and the formation that Zwane is using looks promising and once the team gets it right, they could be an unstoppable force.
Zwane wants the team to be mobile and attack minded. This is why he does not use a trademark defensive midfielder in his team.
In the three games he has used Siyethemba Sithebe, Yosuf Maart and Cole Alexander, who alternate in doing defensive duties.
On Saturday the team could not get into rhythm in the first half and he then introduced Kgaogelo Sekgota in Alexander’s place at half time. This meant a change of shape with Sithebe and Maart as holding midfielders.
Zwane admitted after the game that he was still experimenting.
“We don’t want to make any excuses. We were outplayed in all departments and we were not ourselves,” admitted the Chiefs mentor.
“We were a bit better in the second half, where we had a bit of an offensive attack. If Reeve (Frosler) had scored that one, it could have changed the game altogether.”
Frosler wasted a superb chance before Sundowns got their third goal.
“We couldn’t capitalise and we got punished. We also had the penalty that we missed (Khama Billiat’s penalty was saved by Ronwen Williams) and from there, they created three or four good chances.
“We only played for 15 minutes in the second half, where we dominated a bit, but we lost it again.
“These things happen to the best teams in the world and we’re trying to get some combinations (going) while bringing in some new players.
“Judging by the way we exerted ourselves today, we still have a long way to go and it was good that we were exposed like this.
“It may be early in the season, but it boils down to one thing for the players – (to) pick up, get better and learn from this.”
